Shortland Street Gay Scene Breaches BSA

The Broadcasting Standards Authority today released a
decision on a complaint that an episode of Shortland Street
was in breach of the good taste and decency and children’s
interests standards in the Free to Air Television Code of
Broadcasting Practice. The complaint was upheld.

The
episode included a scene in which two male characters,
Gerald and Lindsay, were involved in a sexual encounter
which began with them undressing and kissing; Gerald was in
his underwear and Lindsay was shirtless, but still wearing
his trousers.

The two characters were then shown lying in
bed talking, covered up to their bare chests by blankets.
Lindsay went under the blankets and Gerald nervously asked
him "where are you going?". Lindsay popped his head back up
and replied "it’s a surprise" before descending back under
but came back up when a ticklish Gerald began giggling.
After Lindsay went back under the blankets, Gerald moved
suddenly and accidentally hit Lindsay in the face with his
knee, giving him a bloody nose.

The episode was rated PGR
and preceded by the following written and verbal
warning:

The following programme contains sexual material
that may not be suitable for a younger audience. We
recommend the guidance of a parent or other adult.

In the
Authority's view, the scene in question was not suitable for
child viewers, even when subject to guidance from a parent
or adult.

The Authority considered that any sexual
content or references during children's normally accepted
viewing times should be subtle and inexplicit, or in the
nature of sexual innuendo that would be likely to go over
the heads of child viewers. In the Authority's view, the
scene was not sufficiently discreet in its depiction of the
sexual content, and was therefore unsuitable for child
viewers.

The Authority made it clear that its findings
had nothing to do with the fact that the scene involved two
men; the scene would have been equally inappropriate if it
had involved a heterosexual couple. Irrespective of the
characters’ sexual orientation, the broadcaster did not
adequately consider the interests of child viewers by
including such an unambiguous sex scene in a programme
broadcast at 7pm.

The Authority did not impose an order.
It said that the decision clarified its expectations
surrounding the broadcast of sexual content of this nature
during the PGR time-band at 7pm. It noted that TVNZ had
reviewed the appraisal process for Shortland Street, and was
satisfied that procedures had been put in place to ensure
that similar breaches did not occur in the future. In
addition, it acknowledged that the decision was likely to
receive extensive publicity due to the nature of the
complaint and the programme involved.

This is the first
time that a complaint against Shortland Street has been
upheld by the BSA.

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